Technology Archives - Page 265 of 355 - Jago Times "English Edition"

Internet use sees sharp spike

March 27, 2020

KARACHI: As millions remain indoors due to varying lockdowns across Pakistan, the internet usage in the country has increased by 15 per cent in a week. In a press release issued on Thursday, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) said the increase was observed due to a spike in online activities by educational institutions and businesses, as well as a ‘work-from-home …

Instagram ramps up effort to restraint COVID-19 disinformation

March 25, 2020

Instagram said Tuesday it was stepping up its efforts to promote credible content about coronavirus and curb the spread of misinformation on the image-centric social network. The move by the Facebook-owned service with more than one billion users worldwide comes amid a scramble by social networks to deliver verified information and stamp out hoaxes. “People who search for information related …

Online gaming at an all-time high as coronavirus confines people indoors

March 25, 2020

When two Spanish footballers took to the controls of FIFA 20 after the coronavirus pandemic saw their La Liga match cancelled, a stadium-sized virtual audience watched online. The huge digital crowd last week is part of a spectacular boom for the digital gaming industry, as record numbers flock to online servers for distraction, entertainment and friendship with the “real world” …

‘Can you hear me?’ Video conferencing complicates EU coordination

March 25, 2020

The European Union’s decision-making process is being sorely tested by video conferencing during the coronavirus pandemic, EU officials say, with one calling it a “catastrophe”. A virtual meeting of EU foreign ministers on Monday was punctuated by technical problems, speakers who were unsure if they could be heard and a lack of translators. “These video conferences don’t work very well, …

Startups hit by virus scourge

March 24, 2020

KARACHI: The tech sector is discovering that it is not immune to the virus scourge that is debilitating large sectors of the country’s economy. Bykea, Swvl, Careem, and Uber on Monday shut their services in Sindh after the provincial government enforced a lockdown. “In accordance with the Government of Sindh’s directives, we have taken measures to temporarily suspend our services …

Govt starts cell phone tracking to alert people at virus riskKARACHI: Several residents across the country have reported receiving a ‘CoronaALERT’ text message advising them to take necessary precautionary measures as they may have come in contact with someone known to have coronavirus. “It has been observed that you may have come in contact with a confirmed coronavirus case in the last 14 days. You are, therefore, requested to take necessary precautionary measures by self-quarantine,” the alert reads. It further advises the person to visit a nearby health facility in case of developing symptoms like fever, cough, difficulty in breathing or body aches. Telecom authorities have confirmed that the message is authentic. The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) told Dawn that the message was being sent to selected people only. “Those identified were duly screened by relevant authorities,” it said. In a press release issued after Dawn approached the PTA, the authority said that at the request of the Ministry of Health, it was sending out SMS alerts to people who might have come in contact with affected individuals during travel or at other places. Rights activists wonder where the data will be stored The initiative that relies in part on a cell phone tracking system is led by the government’s Digital Pakistan programme. The system works by first identifying locations visited by a known Covid-19 patient over the last 14 days. When the owner of a phone tests positive for Covid-19, authorities use a record of their recent movements to notify owners of any other phones that recently came close to that phone of their risk of infection and advised them to self-isolate. “To assist the health ministry in identifying maximum people at risk, we are using all possible types of data sources with the help of telecom providers and PTA,” Tania Aidrus, head of Digital Pakistan, told Dawn. In the absence of clarity by the government, there are many concerns unaddressed such as criteria for selecting a person at risk. Several users said only one member of the family had received the alert despite being residing in the same vicinity. Rights activists wondered where the data would be stored. Ms Aidrus did not specify the extent to which public data was being used to identify clusters. “We are doing everything to help contain the virus. These alerts should not create panic but encourage precaution,” she maintained. “Learning from places like South Korea, we facilitated @nhrscofficial to send SMS alerts to those who have been in close proximity to people who tested #Covid positive. If you’ve received this message, I request you to stay calm & go into self isolation,” Tania Aidrus wrote on Twitter. How are people traced? Phone location can be recorded using various methods. For example, mobile carriers can provide location data of phones using cell site location information (CSLI) — based on which cell towers a phone connects to and when. As mobile devices transition between cell towers, the network also records events such as calls, SMS and data usage, alongside time and location, in the form of call detail records (CDRs). Using CDR analysis, details such as locations visited by a confirmed Covid-19 patient as well as cell phone numbers of others who were in the same vicinity at the time can be obtained from the patient’s phone data. According to a tweet by the Punjab chief minister’s focal person on digital media, the government is already using the CDR method for contact tracing. Other technologies such as GPS sensors built directly into phones and Bluetooth can also be used to acquire location data for more precision at a given time. However, the radius is not 100 per cent accurate. Global surveillance Pakistan is not alone in adopting technology to battle the virus. Singapore has launched a contact-tracing smartphone app to allow authorities to identify those who have been exposed to people infected with coronavirus as part of efforts to curb the spread of the disease. TraceTogether app will work by exchanging short distance Bluetooth signals between phones to detect other participating users in close proximity of two metres. Taiwan has activated what it calls an “electronic fence”, which tracks mobile phone data and alerts authorities when someone who is supposed to be quarantined at home is leaving the house.

March 24, 2020

KARACHI: Several residents across the country have reported receiving a ‘CoronaALERT’ text message advising them to take necessary precautionary measures as they may have come in contact with someone known to have coronavirus. “It has been observed that you may have come in contact with a confirmed coronavirus case in the last 14 days. You are, therefore, requested to take …

Elite hackers target WHO as coronavirus cyberattacks spike

March 24, 2020

Elite hackers tried to break into the World Health Organisation earlier this month, sources told Reuters, part of what a senior agency official said was a more than two-fold increase in cyberattacks. WHO Chief Information Security Officer Flavio Aggio said the identity of the hackers was unclear and the effort was unsuccessful. But he warned that hacking attempts against the …

TECH TALK: Safe platform for digital payments

March 22, 2020

Are you running an online business and tired of dealing with all the cash transactions? Or want to expand the reach by getting online payment channels integrated too, but have no idea where to get started? Look no more, or so is the promise of SafePay. A startup based out of Karachi/California, SafePay lets anyone accept online payments. All you …

EhtiyatCorona: Pakistan’s digital influencers fight virus misinformation

March 21, 2020

KARACHI: “Know the facts and don’t make false assumptions,” a four-minute video titled Karo Na Awareness has generated over 57,000 views within a few hours on YouTube. As Pakistan reported three deaths and over 470 cases on Friday, the video’s creator Bekaar Films is not the only profile to suddenly become the voice of public health on social media. With …

WhatsApp announces new features to combat fake news amid coronavirus outbreak

March 19, 2020

Instant-messaging application WhatsApp on Wednesday announced two new features through which it aims to fight the spread of the pandemic and the misinformation accompanying it that is stoking fears across the globe. To reduce the spread of rumours, the app announced WhatsApp Coronavirus Information Hub — an initiative in partnership with the WHO, UNICEF and UNDP — to offer simple, …